Former Tottenham Hotspur striker Darren Bent believes head coach Jose Mourinho cannot rely on club record-signing Tanguy Ndombele every week.
Bent was complimentary of Ndombele’s talent but believes he has not fully adapted to the physical nature of the Premier League just yet.
The 23-year-old signed for a club-record fee last summer but has struggled to make a firm impression in north London.
Ndombele scored on his Premier League debut for Spurs, but has added just one since the opening day of the season victory over Aston Villa.
Bent’s comments regarding Ndombele come after Mourinho was pictured overseeing a training session with the Frenchman, which the Spurs boss admitted was not in line with the government’s lockdown guidelines amid the coronavirus pandemic.
“I think when you’ve got somebody like Ndombele, with all that ability and all that quality, but he can’t produce it on a regular basis - Mourinho doesn’t need players like that right now,” Bent told Football Insider.
“He needs players that are going to be out there every single week. When you look at some of the best players that he’s had, one thing they’ve all got in common is that they’re all very durable. They can play game after game after game.
“Jose’s probably thinking to himself, that he’s got all the ability in the world, but he needs someone who can play week after week. He can’t take the risk of it being every now and then.
“They can’t rely on him as much they would like.”
Ndombele was openly criticised by Mourinho following the 1-1 draw against Burnley last month.
